BJP men stone TRS MLA house
MLA: BJP receipts for temple funds fake
Parkal TRS legislator Challa Dharma Reddy on Sunday once again spoke on the Ram mandir in Ayodhya, the second time in four days, alleging that the BJP was using Lord Rama for political gains and was giving receipts from fake books after collecting money.
He is the second TRS MLA to speak against the fund collection drive, after party colleague from Korutla, K. Vidyasagar Rao.
Dharma Reddy alleged that fake books were prepared to collect funds in the name of the Ram temple at Ayodhya. He asked where the funds collectod for the Ayodhya temple are going.
“When the government spent `2,900 crore for the Sardar Patel statue, why can’t it spare another `11 crore for Ayodhya,” he asked.
On January 28, the MLA had said, “We have Lord Rama in Bhadrachalam. Why do we need your Lord Rama in Ayodhya?”
On Sunday, Dharma Reddy said, “It is outrageous that the BJP leaders are collecting donations. Only after showing the proper documentation of the funds must they resume collecting funds. The people are being intimidated in the name of donations. I am a true devotee of Lord Rama and built a temple for Him in my hometown," he said.
Following the comments, BJP leaders led by BJP Warangal Urban district president Rao Padma pelted stones at the residence of Dharma Reddy in Hanamkonda.
Party activists in large numbers, chanting the ‘Jai Shri Ram’ slogan, tried to force themselves into the house of the MLA but were prevented by the police. They squatted in front of the house and raised slogans against the MLA. They broke the furniture in front of the house and threw it at the building.
The BJP acivists resorted to throwing stones and damaged the glass panes of the house and also the flower pots. Police forces rushed to the spot and baton-charged the angry mob.
A scuffle ensued as the police tried to arrest the protestors and shift them in vehicles.
On January 21, TRS Korutla legislator K. Vidyasagar Rao had asked the people not to donate money for the construction of the Ram mandir. “Why should people from the state give money for the temple in Uttar Pradesh? Are we not capable of constructing Ram mandirs in our villages,” he had asked.